[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 220 (Friday, November 13, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72633-72635]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25129]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

[RTID 0648-XA637]


New England Fishery Management Council; Public Meeting

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The New England Fishery Management Council (Council, NEFMC) 
will hold a three-day meeting to consider actions affecting New England 
fisheries in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Due to federal and 
state travel restrictions and updated guidance from the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention related to COVID-19, this meeting will 
be conducted entirely by webinar.

DATES: The webinar meeting will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday, and 
Thursday, December 1, December 2, and December 3, 2020, beginning at 9 
a.m. each day.

ADDRESSES: All meeting participants and interested parties can register 
to join the webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3991858738902876943.
    Council address: New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water 
Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950; telephone: (978) 465-0492; 
www.nefmc.org.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas A. Nies, Executive Director, 
New England Fishery Management Council; telephone: (978) 465-0492, ext. 
113.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Agenda

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

    After introductions and brief announcements, the Council will 
receive reports on recent activities from its Chairman and Executive 
Director, NMFS's Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) 
Regional Administrator, liaisons from the Northeast Fisheries Science 
Center (NEFSC) and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, staff from 
the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), and 
representatives from NOAA General Counsel, NOAA's Office of Law 
Enforcement, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Advisory Committee to the 
U.S. Section of the International Commission for the Conservation of 
Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). Next, the Council will continue the discussion 
it initiated during its October 27, 2020 meeting regarding 2021 
priorities for ecosystem-based fishery management (EBFM). During the 
October meeting, the Council approved 2021 work priorities for all of 
its committees and associated responsibilities except for EBFM. The 
Council will discuss EBFM priorities in more detail during this 
December meeting and decide whether to reaffirm or alter its current 
path for EBFM, including its approach for outreach efforts and 
management strategy evaluation.
    Following the lunch break, members of the public will have the 
opportunity to speak during an open comment period on issues that 
relate to Council business but are not included on the published agenda 
for this meeting. The Council asks the public to limit remarks to 3-5 
minutes. These comments will be received through the webinar. A guide 
for how to publicly comment through the webinar is available on the 
Council website at https://s3.amazonaws.com/nefmc.org/NEFMC-meeting-remote-participation_generic.pdf. Next, the Council will receive a 
brief Atlantic Herring Report with an update on: (1) Framework 
Adjustment 7 to the Atlantic Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP), 
which is being developed to protect spawning herring on Georges Bank; 
and (2) other herring-related actions as needed. After that, the 
Council will receive a presentation on the three-year review of the 
Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology and have an opportunity to 
discuss the report and ask questions. Then, the Council will receive a 
final report from the Northeast Regional Ocean Council (NROC) and the 
Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) on their collaborative 
effort to update commercial fisheries data on the Northeast Ocean Data 
Portal. The Council will close out the day with a Habitat Committee 
Report. Here, the Council will: (1) Review and approve completed 
Habitat Policies for Aquaculture and Submarine Cables; (2) receive 
updates on offshore energy and habitat-related work; and (3) receive an 
update from NOAA Fisheries on regional aquaculture activities and 
recent developments related to the announcement for Federal Aquaculture 
Opportunity Areas. The Council is expected to discuss and potentially 
offer feedback on all of these issues. After this discussion, the 
Council will adjourn for the day.

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

    The Council will begin the day with a report from the Northeast 
Fisheries Science Center on the peer reviewed Fall 2020 Management 
Track Stock Assessments for Atlantic sea scallops and 13 Northeast 
multispecies stocks, which include large-mesh groundfish stocks and 
small-mesh whiting/hake stocks. The Scientific and Statistical 
Committee (SSC) then will present its recommendations for overfishing 
limits (OFLs) and acceptable biological catches (ABCs) for: (1) The 
2021 scallop fishing year, along with default specifications for 
fishing year 2022; and (2) northern and southern red hake, northern and 
southern silver hake, and offshore hake for the 2021-23 fishing years. 
The Council's Scallop Committee will provide the next report, which 
will cover (1) an overview of 2020 scallop survey results; and (2) a 
progress report on Framework Adjustment 33 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop 
FMP, which contains 2021 fishery specifications, 2020 default 
specifications, and other measures.
    Following the lunch break, the Council will take up the Small-Mesh 
Multispecies (Whiting) Committee Report. First, the Council will 
receive a presentation on the Annual Monitoring Report containing catch 
accounting information or the 2019 fishing year. Second, the Council 
will initiate an action to set small-mesh multispecies specification 
for the 2021-23 fishing years. The Council will take final action on 
these specifications during its January 2021 meeting. The Council then 
will hear Part 2 of the SSC report, which will cover: (1) OFL and ABC 
recommendations for nine groundfish stocks for fishing years 2021-23; 
and (2) recommendations for white hake rebuilding. The Groundfish 
Committee will report next on Framework Adjustment 61 to the Northeast 
Multispecies FMP. The Council is expected to take final action on this 
framework in two steps. First, during this December meeting, the 
Council will take final action on measures to: (1) Set 2021 total 
allowable catches for shared U.S./Canada stocks on Georges Bank; (2) 
set 2021-23 specifications for roughly half of the U.S. groundfish 
stocks; and (3) identify white hake rebuilding provisions. In addition, 
the Council will discuss the potential inclusion of a universal 
exemption for groundfish sectors that would allow fishing for redfish, 
haddock, and pollock by sector boats under certain provisions. Final 
action on this particular Framework 61 item will take place during the 
Council's January meeting. At the conclusion of the groundfish 
discussion, the Council will adjourn for the day.

Thursday, December 3, 2020

    The Council will begin the day with a briefing from NOAA General 
Council on the final rule addressing disclosure of financial interests 
and voting recusal regulations for Regional Fishery Management 
Councils. Next, the Council will take up the Spiny Dogfish report. 
Spiny dogfish is managed jointly by the New England and Mid-Atlantic 
Fishery Management Councils with the Mid-Atlantic Council having the 
administrative lead. The New England Council will review 2021-22

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specifications proposed by the Mid-Atlantic Council, discuss the 
recommendations, and consider whether to adopt the specifications and/
or identify/propose alternatives. Following the conclusion of the 
dogfish discussion, the Skate Committee Report will be next. The 
Council will consider approving a scoping document to expand the range 
of possible measures in Amendment 5 to the Northeast Skate Complex FMP. 
This amendment is being developed to consider establishing limited 
access in the skate wing and/or bait fisheries and other measures that 
may prevent the triggering of incidental skate possession limits, 
improve the precision and accuracy of catch data, and better define 
skate fishery participants. Finally, the Council will receive a report 
from the Northeast Fisheries Science Center and NOAA's Greater Atlantic 
Regional Fisheries Office on North Atlantic right whales. This report 
will be given in three parts, starting with a NEFSC update on the 
preliminary 2019 population estimate for right whales. Next, GARFO will 
brief the Council on the status of the Atlantic Large Whale Take 
Reduction Plan Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) and proposed 
rule. The Council will have an opportunity to ask questions and offer 
comments. GARFO also will provide an update on the Draft North Atlantic 
Right Whale Batched Biological Opinion (BiOp) covering 10 fisheries. 
The Council also may comment on the BiOp. In addition, the Council will 
receive a brief overview on the 2020 Ropeless Consortium Annual Meeting 
from one of its members. The Council then will close out the meeting 
with other business.
    Although non-emergency issues not contained on this agenda may come 
before the Council for discussion, those issues may not be the subject 
of formal action during this meeting. Council action will be restricted 
to those issues specifically listed in this notice and any issues 
arising after publication of this notice that require emergency action 
under section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act, provided the public has been notified of the Council's 
intent to take final action to address the emergency. The public also 
should be aware that the meeting will be recorded. Consistent with 16 
U.S.C. 1852, a copy of the recording is available upon request.

Special Accommodations

    This meeting is being conducted entirely by webinar. Requests for 
auxiliary aids should be directed to Thomas A. Nies (see ADDRESSES) at 
least 5 days prior to the meeting date.

    Dated: November 9, 2020.
Diane M. DeJames-Daly,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National 
Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-25129 Filed 11-12-20; 8:45 am]
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